Castle Kindergarten

We offer ‘30 hours childcare for working parents’.

We aim to provide each child with a caring environment which is safe, stimulating and a very happy day-time alternative to home. Our carefully designed indoor and outdoor space allows children to play, explore, discover and create in safe, secure and inviting surroundings.

We promote all areas of learning and development as outlined in England's statutory Early Years Foundation Stage which sets the standards for learning, development and care of children from birth to 5 years old. We do this through a planned and purposeful play based curriculum. At the heart of our approach we have created an environment where children can express themselves, explore and investigate.

We offer a curriculum that is not only broad based, but considers the individual needs of each child, allowing each child to develop at their own pace and to follow their own interests. In each room the experiences offered are appropriate to children's age and include both indoor and outdoor activities.

Our learning environments are pivotal to our whole approach to learning and teaching; they are flexible so that spaces can be adapted in response to children's interests or lines of enquiry. Resources are easily accessible to children and are open-ended using largely natural or recycled materials so that children can create many different things in many ways.

We strongly believe that the environment for children must be safe, warm, welcoming and calm; that the activity spaces and meeting spaces in the kindergarten are homely and nurturing; some areas have furniture that would be found in our homes and there are plenty of cosy spaces where children can come together to be with others or on their own. Objects, artwork and photographs from the natural world are displayed around the setting.

Lighting and colour are also used to best effect to create a sense of well-being. These features will surround children within an environment that helps them feel safe and secure and encourages and supports positive behaviour for learning.

We have a large outdoor space where children spend a lot of time investigating the natural world around them. We have access to a wooded area close to our building that we can visit to further extend the children's experiences nature.

We provide day care for children from 3 months to 4 years 11 months. We offer funded places for 2 year olds who are eligible for the government's 15 hours free education and funded places for 3 and 4 year olds who are eligible for 15 and 30 hours of free education.

Parents can either choose to use their full 30 funded hours with us or split it across two settings. Where the 30 hours are split between Castle Kindergarten and Sacriston Academy children can be transferred easily between the two settings at lunchtime through our pick up and drop off service.

We also provide after school and holiday care.

When is it on?

Time of day

MorningAfternoonEvening

Session information

We provide childcare from 7.30am to 6.00pm.
We provide Sacriston After School Club at our premises from 3.15pm

Other details

Local Offer

Local Offer description

We have a clear approach for identifying, responding to, and meeting children’s additional needs. We support and involve parents (and where relevant children), actively listening to and acting on their wishes and concerns.

We work in partnership with the council and other external agencies to ensure the best outcomes for children and their families. We regularly monitor and review our policy, practice and provision and, if necessary, make adjustments.

Accessibility

Our building is completely accessible, with a flat driveway and wide doors throughout the building. The setting is on one floor, with easy access into the rooms and we have tarmac throughout our outdoor area. We have two accessible toilets and our child height toilets are in cubicles which are large enough for staff to support a child when needed.

Experience

Our staff have experience in supporting children with:

ADHD

Asperger's

Asthma

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Challenging Behaviour

Dietary Needs

Dyslexia

Dyspraxia

Eczema

Emotional Needs

Language Impairment

Oxygen Dependency

Serious Allergy

Speech and Language Difficulties

Toileting

Visual Impairment

Training

At times, where children need very specific support, for example any medical support, staff will undertake any necessary training to ensure that the best possible care can be provided for every child.

Our staff have received training on:

ADHD

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Asthma

Challenging Behaviour

Dietary Needs

Emotional Needs

Family/Parent Support

Makaton

Oxygen Dependency

Social and Emotional Difficulties

Speech, Language and Communication Difficulties

Toileting

Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities

Each child has a named key person, who supports them and liaises with families. The key workers are supported by our Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCo) and the deputy SENCo. The SENCo and key person meet regularly with the family of any children who requires additional support, putting targeted plans in place that are outcome focused. Any plans that are in place are reviewed regularly with parents or carers to ensure that these are current and specific to the child's individual needs.

Working with outside agencies

We may need to work alongside additional agencies to support children in the best way possible; this might include, Health Visitors, Speech and Language Therapists, Behaviour Support and Child Psychologists for example. We would always seek parental consent before doing this and involvement with the process throughout would follow.

We will always work in partnership with families and professionals to try and fully meet the individual child's needs. We always seek additional training and support where necessary.

Durham County Council's Families Information Service does not promote nor endorse the services advertised on this website.
Anyone seeking to use/access such services does so at their own risk and may make all appropriate enquiries about fitness
for purpose and suitability to meet their needs.

Disclaimer: Durham County Council's Families Information Service encourages and promotes the use of plain English. We therefore reserve the right to amend any information supplied as necessary. Durham County Council's Families Information Service does not promote nor endorse the services advertised on this website. Anyone seeking to use/access such services does so at their own risk and may make all appropriate enquiries about fitness for purpose and suitability to meet their needs.